{"id":62560,"date":"2024-10-10T12:27:48","date_gmt":"2024-10-10T16:27:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/?p=62560"},"modified":"2024-10-29T15:52:46","modified_gmt":"2024-10-29T19:52:46","slug":"utcs-megan-mcknight-honored-by-white-house-for-leadership-in-opioid-overdose-prevention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2024\/10\/utcs-megan-mcknight-honored-by-white-house-for-leadership-in-opioid-overdose-prevention\/","title":{"rendered":"UTC\u2019s Megan McKnight honored by White House for leadership in opioid overdose prevention"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Attendees

Attendees at the White House Challenge to Save Lives from Overdose Event, on the steps of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Photo by Fred Dubon.<\/p><\/div>\n

When the Biden-Harris Administration issued the White House Challenge to Save Lives from Overdose earlier this year, Megan McKnight, director of the Center for Wellbeing at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, was quick to act.<\/p>\n

The challenge, a nationwide call to expand training and access to lifesaving opioid overdose reversal medications, motivated McKnight to take action\u2014signing the University on to be a part of the program.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn doing that,\u201d she recalled, \u201cI had to account for the work that we were already doing on campus and make a pledge that we were planning to do more.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her efforts have not gone unnoticed.<\/p>\n

On Tuesday, Oct. 8, McKnight was invited to a Washington, D.C., summit hosted by the White House Domestic Policy Council (DPC) and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). The White House Challenge to Save Lives from Overdose<\/strong><\/a> event honored McKnight and nearly 250 other stakeholders for expanding access to lifesaving opioid overdose reversal medication and reducing preventable drug overdose deaths.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe work we\u2019re doing on this campus is being recognized at a national level,\u201d said McKnight, who came to the University in 2019. \u201cWhen I was talking to people there within the Domestic Policy Council, once I introduced myself, they were aware of UTC and knew about the critical work we were doing.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s exciting to know that what we\u2019re doing to impact the lives of our students is in alignment with the broader public health work that\u2019s being done. We are being recognized for the positive things we are doing for our community.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Megan

Megan McKnight and Dr. Rahul Gupta<\/p><\/div>\n

The event was held in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, located next to the White House\u2019s West Wing. McKnight and the other summit attendees participated in a roundtable with the ONDCP director, Dr. Rahul Gupta, administration officials\u2014including the DPC White House Fellow, Dr. Michael Hole, who is responsible for overseeing the challenge\u2014and sector leaders.<\/p>\n

The conversations, McKnight said, focused on the commitments made under the White House Challenge and the far-reaching impact of these efforts.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe people from the different sectors were asked to share about their commitments and the work they\u2019ve done,\u201d she said, \u201cand we were thanked for the progress that\u2019s being done through this initiative\u2014and for understanding the impacts.\u201d<\/p>\n

Event speakers included Gupta, DPC Director Neera Tanden, 75th Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, and Dr. Anthony Harris, a global medical officer at Amazon.<\/p>\n

The invitees received letters of commendation from President Biden and were treated to video messages from actors Robert DeNiro and Samuel L. Jackson thanking them for their dedication to the work.<\/p>\n

According to data provided by the Center for Wellbeing from the 2023-24 academic year and the start of the fall semester, McKnight and her team had:<\/p>\n